Masters of Mankind

Essays and Lectures, 1969-2013

by Noam Chomsky Foreword by Marcus Raskin

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Description

In this collection of essays from 1969 to 2013, many in book form for the first time, Noam Chomsky examines the nature of state power, from the ideologies driving the Cold War to the War on Terror, and reintroduces the moral and legal questions that all too often go unheeded. With unrelenting logic, he holds the arguments of empire up to critical examination and shatters the myths of those who protect the power and privilege of the few against the interests and needs of the many. An introduction by Marcus Raskin contextualizes Chomsky's place among some of the most influential thinkers of modern history.

Author Bios

Noam Chomsky is Institute Professor (emeritus) in the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Laureate Professor of Linguistics and Agnese Nelms Haury Chair in the Program in Environment and Social Justice at the University of Arizona. His work is widely credited with having revolutionized the field of modern linguistics. Chomsky is the author of numerous best-selling political works, which have been translated into scores of languages. Recent books include What Kind of Creatures Are We?, as well as Optimism Over Despair, and Internationalism of Extinction.

Marcus Raskin is the co-founder of the politically progressive Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), and he teaches social movements, national security and the philosophy of public policy at the Stephen J. Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration at the George Washington University in Washington, DC.

More Info

Publication date: September 30, 2014

Table of Contents

Foreword by Marcus Raskin

1. “Knowledge and Power: Intellectuals and the Welfare-Warfare State” in Priscilla Long, ed., The New Left, Boston: Porter Sargent, 1970, pp. 172-199.

2. “An Exception to the Rules” Inquiry, 17 April 1978.

3. “The Divine License to Kill”

4. “Consent Without Consent: Reflections on the Theory and Practice of Democracy,” originally a lecture given on March 28, 1996, then appeared in Cleveland State Law Review 44.4.

5. “Simple Truths, Hard Problems: Some Thoughts on Terror, Justice, and Self-Defense,” NYU Frumkes Lecture. November 15, 2004.

6. "Human Intelligence and the Environment," speech delivered at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, on September 30, 2010.

7. "Can Civilisation Survive Really Existing Capitalism?" Dublin, Ireland, UCD Philosophy Society Inaugural Lecture, April 2, 2013.

Endnot

Reviews

"Chomsky is a global phenomenon . . . perhaps the most widely read voice on foreign policy on the planet." —New York Times Book Review
"Considering that Chomsky’s relevance has only grown with time, and that his positions prove less radical and more prescient as years pass, the timing of his new book release, The Masters of Mankind, a retrospective of lectures and essays stretching from 1969 to 2013, is perfect... There is more than enough profound, powerful material in this collection to impress any readers unfamiliar with Chomsky’s intellectual agility." —The Daily Beast
"There is no living political writer who has more radically changed how more people think in more parts of the world about political issues." —Glenn Greenwald
"There is no living political writer who has more radically changed how more people think in more parts of the world about political issues."
Glenn Greenwald

"Chomsky is a global phenomenon . . . perhaps the most widely read voice on foreign policy on the planet."
New York Times Book Review

"Considering that Chomsky’s relevance has only grown with time, and that his positions prove less radical and more prescient as years pass, the timing of his new book release, The Masters of Mankind, a retrospective of lectures and essays stretching from 1969 to 2013, is perfect... There is more than enough profound, powerful material in this collection to impress any readers unfamiliar with Chomsky’s intellectual agility."
The Daily Beast

Praise for Hopes and Prospects:

"A revelation. . . . This is a book woven through with hope and awe at all the people who slip beyond imperial control and establish real democracy . . . a treasure-trove."
The Independent

"Chomsky is a global phenomenon . . . perhaps the most widely read voice on foreign policy on the planet." —New York Times Book Review
"Considering that Chomsky’s relevance has only grown with time, and that his positions prove less radical and more prescient as years pass, the timing of his new book release, The Masters of Mankind, a retrospective of lectures and essays stretching from 1969 to 2013, is perfect... There is more than enough profound, powerful material in this collection to impress any readers unfamiliar with Chomsky’s intellectual agility." —The Daily Beast
"There is no living political writer who has more radically changed how more people think in more parts of the world about political issues." —Glenn Greenwald

"There is no living political writer who has more radically changed how more people think in more parts of the world about political issues."
Glenn Greenwald

"Chomsky is a global phenomenon . . . perhaps the most widely read voice on foreign policy on the planet."
New York Times Book Review

"Considering that Chomsky’s relevance has only grown with time, and that his positions prove less radical and more prescient as years pass, the timing of his new book release, The Masters of Mankind, a retrospective of lectures and essays stretching from 1969 to 2013, is perfect... There is more than enough profound, powerful material in this collection to impress any readers unfamiliar with Chomsky’s intellectual agility."
The Daily Beast

Praise for Hopes and Prospects:

"A revelation. . . . This is a book woven through with hope and awe at all the people who slip beyond imperial control and establish real democracy . . . a treasure-trove."
The Independent